Indiana Ag Connection - Purdue Receives International Top Economic, Innovation Award

Indiana Ag News Headlines

Purdue Receives International Top Economic, Innovation Award
Indiana Ag Connection - 11/18/2019

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) has named Purdue University as a top award recipient of its 2019 Innovation & Economic Prosperity Place award.

The award follows a 2019 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report that Tippecanoe County rose to the highest growing income in the nation with the largest fourth-quarter wage gain in 2018. According to the report, the average weekly wage increased 15.1% during that time period.

"These results are built upon years of collaborations among many partners across the entire region and state," said West Lafayette Mayor John Dennis. "And we a poised for even more growth in the coming years with multiple planned economic development initiatives."

Examples include the recent expansions of international companies, including Rolls-Royce, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories and global defense and security company Saab, which are all underway in the Discovery Park District, a $1 billion-plus development to transform the west side of the Purdue campus.

Schweitzer and Saab are already actively creating spaces for more than 600 new high-tech jobs.

The Wall Street Journal also lists Purdue University as the third best in the U.S. and sixth best globally in a recent article highlighting startups generated from university-licensed technologies over the past 12 months.

"This award is a testament to the presence of Purdue University throughout the state of Indiana and beyond," said Steve Abel, Purdue University associate provost for engagement. "This presence allows Purdue, Indiana's land-grant university, to educate future leaders and improve the quality of life for Indiana residents and our global society."

Other growth in and around the Purdue West Lafayette campus includes the:

- $120 million State Street Redevelopment Project in partnership with the city of West Lafayette.

- New housing, business and commercial growth, including the Aspire apartments, Provenance single-family residential living, the Convergence Center for Innovation and Collaboration, and multiple high-tech startup companies.

"We are committed to continue with our work at Discovery Park District and other avenues contributing to a sense of 'place' for the university and surrounding areas," said Greg Deason, senior vice president of entrepreneurship and place making for Purdue Research Foundation. "Dynamic places make it possible for innovators and entrepreneurs to take their ideas to impact."

Purdue also launched its Center for Regional Development in 2005 to deepen its economic engagement across the state and region. The center leads a variety of initiatives to address the unique needs of each community it works in and spur development across the state. Partnering with Ball State University, the center's Hometown Collaboration Initiative works to grow local capacity in leadership and economic placemaking.

Purdue also has invested in two Purdue Polytechnic High School locations in Indianapolis with a goal to fully prepare high school students who otherwise might not have the opportunity for high-tech and STEM-related careers.

"Economic engagement and development cuts to the heart of public universities' mission to advance the public good," said Peter McPherson, APLU president. "We applaud the winners of this year's APLU Innovation & Economic Prosperity University Awards. They stand out as excellent examples of how public universities are addressing their communities' needs and advancing regional economic development."

Other Indiana Headlines